By Karim Hammam
Lawyers for former President Donald Trump appeared before a five-judge panel in Manhattan on Thursday to argue that his 2024 criminal conviction on 34 counts of falsifying business records should be overturned. The hearing marks a pivotal moment in the first criminal prosecution of a former U.S. president.
Appeal Arguments
Trump's attorneys from Sullivan & Cromwell contend the case was the "most politically charged prosecution in our Nation's history," noting that the Manhattan district attorney, a Democrat, brought charges during a contentious presidential election in which Trump was the leading Republican candidate. They argue the judge should have recused himself and that parts of the trial should have been protected by presidential immunity. The appeal also claims prosecutors abused New York law by stacking time-barred misdemeanors under a convoluted legal theory.
Prosecution Response
The Manhattan district attorney's office counters that Trump was convicted of a crime regularly prosecuted in New York and that presidential immunity does not cover the alleged conduct. Their filing states that a "mountain of evidence unaffected by any claim of official presidential immunity overwhelmingly established defendant's guilt."
Case Background
The conviction stemmed from a six-week trial in spring 2024, during which prosecutors alleged a scheme to conceal a $130,000 hush money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election. A jury found Trump guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree, one for each reimbursement payment to his former lawyer. After winning the 2024 presidential election, Trump was sentenced to an unconditional discharge due to the extraordinary circumstances of his impending inauguration. His lead defense attorney, Todd Blanche, was later appointed U.S. attorney general.
